Cheapest saw with riving knife that can accept aftermarket fences

[Josh Michael]

I passed on getting a table saw some years ago and have been using a guide rail system. I'm considering switching to a table now that riving knives are so incredibly common. It's not going to be worth it for me to spend $1,000 on a saw though and I need at least 42" rip capacity.

I can get an aftermarket fence system for about $250. I just need a saw to attach it to. Craigslist is loaded with cheap cast iron saws, but none have riving knives. So I considered getting a new cheapo Craftsman or something, but they are now constructed out of aluminum with the fence guide rails molded right into the table.

So I thought this would be a cool challenge for you guys. Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks bros.

[Jamie Buxton]

Griz G0715P. $795. Riving knife. The rails just bolt on. You could bolt on your aftermarket fence, but for less money you could replace the OEM rails with longer ones, and use the OEM fence.

Or you could use the saw as delivered, with its 36" rip capacity. If you find you really need the 42" rip, then you upgrade the saw. You have a guide rail saw, so you have a plan B.

[Mike Henderson]

Griz G0715P. $795. Riving knife. The rails just bolt on. You could bolt on your aftermarket fence, but for less money you could replace the OEM rails with longer ones, and use the OEM fence.

Or you could use the saw as delivered, with its 36" rip capacity. If you find you really need the 42" rip, then you upgrade the saw. You have a guide rail saw, so you have a plan B.
Since 42" is only 6" more than 36" you may be able to shift the rails over and get that extra 6". I did that on my SawStop.

You lose some ability to put the fence on the other side of the blade but I never do that anyway.

Mike

[Loren Woirhaye]

Used older European saw. Riving knives have been spec on most European saws for decades.

Tilt table saws can be retrofitted with a riving knife.

When the saw arbor pivots to change blade height, this makes retrofitting tricky. Some saw arbors travel up and down on milled ways but that is not easy to find.

If you give up on the idea of using the knife on non-through cuts, any saw can be fitted with a riving knife for through-cuts only with the blade at maximum height. The knife is removed if the blade is lowered for a non-through cut.

[Matt Meiser]

What would be the purpose of attaching a nice fence to a junk saw?

There's an add-on aftermarket riving knife someone presumably makes in their garage, which I'm sure someone will suggest at some point in this thread. Read this thread before considering that option: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?176074-Beware-the-****

[Josh Michael]

Thanks for the replies. This isn't an easy one obviously.

I stated it wasn't going to be worth $1,000 and the Grizzly with shipping and lift gate fee before taxes indeed comes out to $950, but that's not quite what I was trying to accomplish. Thanks.

I don't want to use an add-on riving knife. All the safety features coming on table saws is the reason I feel comfortable considering this and I'm only really going to trust the manufacturer's safety equipment.

I wish I could find an older European contractor table saw around here. I've never seen one...ever.

What makes a saw a ? I'd guess everybody would answer that differently. I don't want a saw that needs to be realigned after every cut or that can't cut through a couple inches of wood.....but they don't make those kinds of saws, do they? Cheap feeling less durable materials, non-standard miter tracks, bad fences, arbor size....all things I have no concern with.

[Cary Falk]

Home Depot has the Ridgid Hybrid for $550. A 10% coupon can easily be found and some have reported the their HD accepts Harbor Freight 20%. It has a riving knife and table mounted trunnions. The fence would not be long enough but I don't think it is the greatest anyways. You would probably want to replace it anyway. That would put your total bill at $750. I think that will be about as cheap as you can get.

[John Goodin]

If you purchase a saw a Home Depot or Lowes, you may want to consider purchasing discounted gift cards from cardpool.com. I do frequently for larger purchases and it saves an extra 7 to 9 percent. Not much, but it covers the sales tax.

[Rich Harkrader]

That carpool.com site is pretty nifty, John. 8% off Home Depot cards. That's sales tax around here. Thanks!

[Josh Michael]

Home Depot has the Ridgid Hybrid for $550. A 10% coupon can easily be found and some have reported the their HD accepts Harbor Freight 20%. It has a riving knife and table mounted trunnions. The fence would not be long enough but I don't think it is the greatest anyways. You would probably want to replace it anyway. That would put your total bill at $750. I think that will be about as cheap as you can get.

Ya, I like that saw. Same one is at Sears for $499. Problem is, the fence rail is integrated with the table (they were molded as one piece), so I can't add an aftermarket fence. All new cheaper saws are like this now as far as I can tell.

[Steve Wurster]

Ya, I like that saw. Same one is at Sears for $499. Problem is, the fence rail is integrated with the table (they were molded as one piece), so I can't add an aftermarket fence. All new cheaper saws are like this now as far as I can tell.

From what I can tell from the manual, the fence rail on the Ridgid R4512 is not integrated. There are a number of pictures out there of people putting aftermarket fences on that saw, including an Incra. Now there are other complaints out there about that saw, mostly relating to its trunnion assembly and the like, so it might not meet your needs for those reasons anyway.

[Josh Michael]

From what I can tell from the manual, the fence rail on the Ridgid R4512 is not integrated. There are a number of pictures out there of people putting aftermarket fences on that saw, including an Incra. Now there are other complaints out there about that saw, mostly relating to its trunnion assembly and the like, so it might not meet your needs for those reasons anyway.

It looks like you're right. That's probably going to be the winner. Thanks.

[Earl McLain]

From what I can tell from the manual, the fence rail on the Ridgid R4512 is not integrated. There are a number of pictures out there of people putting aftermarket fences on that saw, including an Incra. Now there are other complaints out there about that saw, mostly relating to its trunnion assembly and the like, so it might not meet your needs for those reasons anyway.

That's correct, the Ridgid 4512 and Craftsman 21833 have bolt-on fence rails, and are basically clones. I bought the 21833 about a year ago for a few reasons--it has 15 amp motor (4512 is 13 amp) and included dado throat plate (4512 was an extra $25 or $30). Went to 2 Home Depots, and they would not move from $499. Sears in-store was $549, marked down to $499 at the time, but I went to my car and bought online for in-store pick up--20% online discount at that time, and a $60 coupon for purchase of $300 or more, 5% off for using a sears card, yada yada yada, and I spent right at $300 ($60 in "points" and $240 in cash). I hated having to go through the shopping gymnastics, but for $200 it was worth it.

The trunion issue seemed to be random, and mostly mentioned in older reviews--I was prepared to have to take it back, but didn't have to. Saw runs true, and the stock fence was acceptable, but no matter what I did I couldn't get it to lock square. Only a few adjustment points, but the fiddling around it took to get "almost good" was crazy--seemed like a dog chasing its tail. The TS-LS I put on it after trying the stock fence for 3 months--no comparison. Took less time to install and square the Incra and make my test cuts than it did to remove the stock fence.

I do like the riving knife on the saw, easy to take down and slide back up into position so it goes back into position when I finish the non-through cutting. Better saws are available, but for me this was plenty adequate. Passed the nickel test easy on 120 volt, after I switched to 240v the start feels smoother (and my lights don't dim!!) Don't know if I got a good one, or if they fixed the trunion issues.

My opinion--your mileage may vary.

earl

[scott spencer]

~ $500 is the starting point for new full size saws with belt drive induction motors.....Ridgid R4512, Cman 21833, PCB270TS, etc.

[Sal Kurban]

How about the discussion in this thread:
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?112419-Riving-knife-for-Model-10-Delta-Contractor-s-saw
Sal.

[Jason White]

Grizzly has what you're looking for.



I passed on getting a table saw some years ago and have been using a guide rail system. I'm considering switching to a table now that riving knives are so incredibly common. It's not going to be worth it for me to spend $1,000 on a saw though and I need at least 42" rip capacity.

I can get an aftermarket fence system for about $250. I just need a saw to attach it to. Craigslist is loaded with cheap cast iron saws, but none have riving knives. So I considered getting a new cheapo Craftsman or something, but they are now constructed out of aluminum with the fence guide rails molded right into the table.

So I thought this would be a cool challenge for you guys. Any suggestions appreciated. Thanks bros.

[Jason White]

I would argue that a really good fence can turn a so-so saw into a terrific saw!


What would be the purpose of attaching a nice fence to a junk saw?

There's an add-on aftermarket riving knife someone presumably makes in their garage, which I'm sure someone will suggest at some point in this thread. Read this thread before considering that option: http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?176074-Beware-the-****

[Matt Meiser]

But a good fence won't turn a terrible saw into a so-so saw if its underpowered, has junk trunions, and an arbor that doesn't run true. That's what you can expect on the least expensive saws.

[David Kumm]

I'll take a stout trunnion, and a quality fence, over a riving knife any day. I can make a splitter easily that handles most of the cuts with risk. I can't improve the thing that holds the blade spinning at a million miles an hour. Dave

[Jason White]

Well, yeah, there's that... ;)


But a good fence won't turn a terrible saw into a so-so saw if its underpowered, has junk trunions, and an arbor that doesn't run true. That's what you can expect on the least expensive saws.